Celtic are set to secure the future of youngster Daniel Kelly despite interest from Premier League giants Arsenal and Liverpool.
That’s according to the Daily Record, who claim that Celtic are giving Kelly a three-year professional contract this week.
It’s stated that Arsenal and Liverpool were both looking to raid Celtic and lure him to the Premier League.
Portuguese side Benfica were also keen, leaving Celtic to scramble and try to keep hold of Kelly in the face of major interest.
Kelly, 16, has instead decided to commit his future to Celtic and should have his professional deal signed, sealed and delivered by the end of the week.
This comes after the Daily Record claimed in 2020 that Kelly had signed a pre-professional contract until 2024.
Celtic still wanted to secure Kelly’s future though and look to have ensured that the midfielder stays for a while yet.
It was absolutely vital that Celtic kept hold of Kelly – losing another teenager to Liverpool would have been a huge blow.
Just last week, The Athletic reported that Liverpool are on the verge of signing Celtic teenager Ben Doak.
Doak, a winger or attacking midfielder, is one of Celtic’s top young talents and Liverpool appear to have won the race for his signature.
Liverpool seemingly wanted to make it a double deal by bringing Kelly to Anfield too, reuniting him and Doak in an exciting move for the future.
Yet whilst Doak is Anfield-bound, Kelly is choosing to stay at Celtic for the coming years, possibly moving up to the first-team just like Doak already has under Ange Postecoglou.
Arsenal already have a Celtic youth product in Kieran Tierney, and joining him could have been appealing to Kelly, but Celtic appear to have settled any questions about the teenager’s future.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
